Businessowner has questions about ziplines

I am writing to you in reference to Chris Peterson’s article in the Hungry Horse News concerning the zipline that is being built by Reno Baldwin on U.S. 2 near the Montana Vortex and House of Mystery.

As owner of the Montana Vortex, I have some concerns with Mr. Baldwin’s project and the way that he and the state have handled this matter. Initially, Mr. Baldwin tried to purchase a small piece of land from me to erect his replica fire tower structure; however, I did not get a good feeling about the project, and I declined to sell the property to Baldwin. Although this zipline business may increase the exposure I get for my business, I felt that the location that Baldwin wanted to use would have an overall negative impact on my business.

Mr. Baldwin then went to the state and leased about 26 acres of land through the Montana Department of Transportation for a yearly fee of $20,000 so he could continue with his project. I have met with Mr. Baldwin on numerous occasions and discussed this project and reviewed his plans, and in the last year he has assured me every step of the way that he would keep his ziplines well away from the area we use for our guided tours and not impact my business.

In reviewing his plans and drawings, I have felt that it was odd that a project of this magnitude would not require any environmental review, be open to a public hearing, or at least be reviewed and signed off on by the Flathead County Planning Board.

I have since talked to the Planning Department and found that the area is not zoned, and the only interest the county has would be concerning environmental health and the permitting and inspection of the well and the septic system. They also told me that the project was in a scenic corridor and that cell towers or new highway signs could not be installed in that area so that it would not impact the view. When I asked them if a 70-foot fire tower would impact the view, I was referred to the state.  

A couple of weeks ago, Mr. Baldwin broke ground on the project and immediately began to remove trees and brush so he could dig out a basement for his fire tower to rest on and install a septic system and well. As a result of the recent rains and the use of a large excavator, Mr. Baldwin has destroyed much of the meadow habitat adjacent to the fishing access and at least two tepee rings that were identified by an environmental study that was done years ago when the state was going to widen U.S. 2.  

Today, May 12, Mr. Baldwin began to cut 12-to-16 foot wide swaths through the forest starting from his proposed tower and continuing to each of the trees he will use for his zipline platforms. Contrary to what he told me, Mr. Baldwin cut one of these swaths right at the back of my property line, which severely impacts my business and the guided tours we do at the Vortex. It also cut right through an area that local Native Americans have told me was scared to them because they believe the spirits of their ancestor still frequent that area.

Over the last 10 years, many Native American ceremonies have been conducted in that area, and even today a member of the Siksika Nation conducted a ceremony their and was appalled at the destruction that he observed.  

In Chris Peterson’s article about the ziplines, Mr. Baldwin states that “the business was taking pains to not harm the trees, using special fasteners that can be loosened to allow the trees to grow.” The trees that he was referring to are the six to seven trees that he will install platforms on for his ziplines. Of course, he does not want those trees to die. What Mr. Baldwin failed to tell Peterson was that he was cutting down hundreds of trees in his 10-to-12 foot wide swaths so that his ziplines had a clear path between each of the platform trees.

Today alone, Baldwin cut down several old growth trees and damaged many other trees on the edge of the swaths he is cutting while doing irreparable damage to the forest floor with his large excavator. In some areas, the ruts he has left are nearly a foot deep. All of the tourists that visited my place of business today were also appalled by the destruction and have been questioning me as to how the state or county could allow that to happen.

I have spoken to Gary Engman at the Montana Department of Transportation and he was very helpful. He supposedly walked the area with Baldwin, but when asked couldn’t remember any of the proposed lines being near my property.

I also spoke with Karla Haas at MDT in Helena. She is the person who approved this project. I asked her if she had made a visit to the site or knew that Baldwin was cutting down hundreds of trees, and she told me that Engman had approved Baldwin cutting down a few trees and that she had not been at the site. When I asked her to come out and take a look at what was happening, she stated, “Well you know, I am in Helena and can’t just come out there, but I will send Engman out to take a look.”

Based on what Mr. Baldwin has done so far, it appears that the state has given Mr. Baldwin carte blanche to do whatever ever he wants to do without any regard to Native American sites, environmental concerns, wildlife habitat or impacts on my well-established business in the area.          

It is my opinion that the state has been negligent in allowing Mr. Baldwin to proceed with this project without any environmental review or public comment and has really no idea what he is doing. Even though the property is not zoned, the state should have some responsibility in making sure that the proposed project fits the land and does not impact other people’s property or destroy the existing environment.

The land that Baldwin has leased is basically flat with one 20-to-30 foot drop off and does not have enough elevation to effectively run the ziplines unless he installs at least two 20-to-40 foot tall spiral staircases on the trees that will be used for platforms. This means that those trees will have to be limbed up to at least 40 feet, which may stress the trees and eventually kill them.

I have spoken to state Sen. Dee Brown, as she is on the Highways and Transportation Committee, and she told me she was not aware of this project until she read about it in the paper and felt that some sort of public hearing should have been held. She has agreed to look into the matter.    

It is my understanding that state lands belong to the people of the state of Montana and are under the steward ship of the Department of Transportation to lease out for public use. If this project is a reflection of the ability of the state to take care of our land, then we have a problem that should be looked into.

I question why a project of this size can conveniently slip under the radar and not be subjected to some sort of scrutiny. Does this mean that anyone can go out and lease state lands and do whatever they want to do? Something is not right here.

Joe Hauser and Tammy Fox, of Montana Vortex and House of Mystery.